Stamp-affixing machine



A. AND J. VILLANI. STAMP AFFIXING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC.21, 1920. 1,417,362 Patented May 23, 1922,

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

l8 7- I I I4- a m 6*- a 4 I WITNESSES A TTORA'EVS A TTOH/VE V8 A. AND]. VILLANI.

STAMP AFFIXING MACHINE.

WI T/VESSES srrns y ANTHONY VILLANI AND JOHN VILLANI, 0F BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

STAMF-AFFIXING MACHINE.

Application filed December 21,- 1920.

lllachine, of which the following is a description.

Uur invention relates to a machine for atlixing stamps to envelopes or for performing similar operation and has for its general object to provide a machine of the indicated purpose in whichby simple mechanism the stamps will be unfailingly fed in succession from a reel to an aflixing plunger and the operations of feeding and affixing be automatically timed with accuracy.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specili cation, it being understood that the drawings are merely illustrative of one example of the invention.

Figure 1 is a plan view of a machine embodying our invention;

F i gure 2 is a front elevation thereof on a larger scale;

Figure 3 is a longitudinal vertical section on the line 3 3 Figure l. but on the scale of Figure 2, the affixingplunger being shown in the lowered position as in affixing a stamp;

Figure is a detail in vertical section of parts of the atlixing plunger showing said plunger in the raised position;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary View in side elevation the view being given to show the envelope slot at the left of the U-shaped frame affording a guide and gage for the envelope as well as constituting a support for the reciprocating stamp cutter and aflixing plunger.

In the illustrated example of our invention a broad base 10 is provided adapted to be secured to a desk or other support and on said base are standards 11 with a shaft 12 of a reel 13 on which a strip A of stamps is reeled. In a second pair of standards It a second pair of shafts 15 have bearings and carry feed rollers 16 between which the strip A of stamps passes.

On the feed shafts 15 are intermeshing pinions 17, one of which is in mesh with a pinion 18 for driving it the pinion 18 being on a stud shaft 19 having a bearing in a standard 20, said shaft 19 having a larger Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 23, 1922.

SerialNo. 432,288.

driven gear wheel 21 which meshes with a drive pinion 22 on a shaft 23 provided with a crank handle 24% or other means to turn it. The shaft 23 turns in bearings afforded'by standard 25 and by an upright frame 26,

U-shaped in horizontal section to present a back plate 27 and side arms 28.

In front of the feed rollers 16 is a moistoning roller 29 ona shaft 30, turning in a box 31 to hold water in the case of moistening stamps or in the case of label affixing. The shaft of roller 29 is adapted to turn freely and above said roller is a guide suitably fastened at 33 to the rear of the back plate 27 for guiding the strip A to the slot 3%. Said back plate 27 has a horizontal slot 34: therein through which the stamp strip A may pass toward the front of the frame 26 between the sides 28 thereof. A ledge 85 is provided on the back plate 27 at the entrance to the slot so that the stamp strip entering the frame 26 preparatory to being severed will have a broad sup port. The guide 32 is sufiiciently close to the periphery of the roller 29 to cause the stamp strip to pass in sufficiently close rela tion to said roller to become moistened but without the guide 32 exerting such apres sure on the strip as would cause the strip to buckle between the roller 29and the feed rollers 16.

The frame 26 at one side 28 has slot 36 therein for the convenient entrance of the envelope B and the frame forms a gage for positioning the envelope by alining it against the opposite side 28.

A cutter 37 in the form of a flat plate is adapted to be reciprocated on the front face of the back plate 27, said cutter plate having an opening 38 through which a fastening screw 39 extends into the said back plate 27, so that the cutter plate has guided movement on said back plate. The lower rear edge is the cutting edge of the cutter plate 37 and to coact therewith a fixed cutter 40 is embodied in the back plate 27 at the bottom and forms the bottom of guide slot 3%, the arrangement being such that as said plate 3'7 is moved downwardly, it will, in coaction with the fixed cutter 4O sever the forward stamp of strip A, a severed stamp being indicated in Figure 3 at A. The reciprocating cutter plate 37 constitutes a carrier for a stamp-affixing plunger 41, the upstanding shank 42 of which plunger extends freely through a bracket arm 43 rigid with the cutter plate 37. A spring 44 coiled about the shank 42 abuts at its upper end against the bracket 43 and its pressure exerted against the lower end or the head of the plunger 41 normally tending to depress the latter, the spring permitting the plunger to yield vertically. A pin 45 on shank 42 above the bracket 43 limits the clownward movement of the plunger under the action of the spring 44. The bracket 43 terminates in an upstanding member 46 which is in engagement with the periphery of a revolving cam 47 on shaft 23. Said cam 47 includes protuberant members 48 on the periphery thereof in suitable number according to the number of operations desired of the stamp severing and afiiXing operations to be performed with each revolution of the shaft 23, there being shown two diametrically opposite protuberances 48 in the illustrated example, whereby there are two severing and affixing operations for each revolution of shaft 23.

A retractile spring 49 is secured at its upper end to a pin 50 on back plate 27 and at its lower end to a pin 51 on the reciproeating cutter plate 37 at the top of the latter, said spring tending to maintain the cutter plate and plunger raised and with the bracket terminal 46 in contact at all times with the cam 47.

With the described construction the back gearing elements 18 and 21 will serve to turn the pinions l7 and feed rollers 16 at a reduced speed relatively to the shaft 23. Thus, the strip will be advanced through the slot 34 beneath the plunger 41 which is held raised by the spring 49 except as a protuberance 48 arrives at the bracket terminal 46. The engagement of a cam protuberance 48 with the bracket terminal 46 will depress the bracket 43 and with it the cutter 37 and plunger 41.. At this time a stamp will have arrived beneath the plunger so that the downward movement of the cutter 37 will of the stamp onto the envelope B by the plunger 41, said plunger is permitted to yield by reason of the spring 44. The envelope B when entered in the frame 26 at the slot.

36 and during the affixing operation is supported on a cable 52 on the top of a block 58 suitably secured to the base 10 so that ample resistance is offered to the thrust of the plunger.

Vi e would state in conclusion that while the illustrated example constitutes a practical embodiment of our invention, we do not limit ourselves strictly to the mechanical details herein illustrated, since manifestly the same can be considerably varied without departure from the spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described our invention, We claim:

A machine of the'class described, including a reciprocating cutter, a bracket on said cutter having a horizontal portion and an upstanding member, a spring pressed vertical plunger carried by the horizontal portion of said bracket and yieldable relatively to the bracket and thus yieldable relatively to the cutter when stamping, a drive shaft,

means on said shaft to engage the upstanding member of said bracket-to move the cutter and plunger in one direction, means to restore the cutter after movement by said shaft, and means to feed stamps to said cutter and plunger. v

ANTHONY VILLANI. JOHN VILLANI.

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